Johnston Nurse Recognized at Women & Infants

Release Date: 12/01/2014

Women & Infants Hospital recently honored Ivonilde Burgess, RN, of Johnston, RI, a nurse in the hospital's Infusion Center. The award is part of the DAISY Foundation's program to recognize the above and beyond efforts performed by nurses every day.

Ivonilde has been a nurse with Women & Infants for 14 years. Her patients believe she epitomizes the DAISY Award and all that it stands for. "Ivonilde is the most thoughtful, caring nurse that I have ever come across. Ivonilde not only has a great work relationship with all her peers, but also is so caring to all patients and families. She takes the time to make sure each and every patient is comfortable and secure. She is the best team player," said one patient of her experience with Ivonilde.

"The worst thing about my mother's cancer is handling the unknown. Ivonilde is not only professional, but genuine. Ivonilde makes this phase of her treatment easier. My mother looks forward to coming to treatments because she trusts Ivonilde," expressed another caregiver of her interaction with Ivonilde at the Infusion Center.

The not-for-profit DAISY Foundation is based in Glen Ellen, CA, and was established by family members in memory of J. Patrick Barnes. Patrick died at the age of 33 in late 1999 from complications of Idiopathic Thrombocytopenic Purpura (ITP), a little known but not uncommon auto-immune disease. The care Patrick and his family received from nurses while he was ill inspired this unique means of thanking nurses for making a profound difference in the lives of their patients and patient families.

Said Bonnie Barnes, president and co-founder of the DAISY foundation, "When Patrick was critically ill, our family experienced first-hand the remarkable skill and care nurses provide patients every day and night. Yet these unsung heroes are seldom recognized for the super-human work they do. The kind of work the nurses at Women & Infants Hospital are called on to do every day epitomizes the purpose of The DAISY Award."

Ivonilde is the third recipient of the newly created DAISY award at Women & Infants and the second Infusion Center nurse to be honored. If you would like to nominate an extraordinary nurse that you encountered at any Women & Infants affiliated location or the main hospital, you can submit an application online or in person. Fellow providers and patients may nominate a nurse for the award.

About Women & Infants Hospital

Women & Infants Hospital of Rhode Island, a Care New England hospital, is one of the nation’s leading specialty hospitals for women and newborns. A major teaching affiliate of The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University for obstetrics, gynecology and newborn pediatrics, as well as a number of specialized programs in women’s medicine, Women & Infants is the 9th largest stand-alone obstetrical service in the country and the largest in New England with approximately 8,500 deliveries per year. A Designated Baby-Friendly® USA hospital, U.S.News & World Report 2014-15 Best Children’s Hospital in Neonatology and a 2014 Leapfrog Top Hospital, in 2009 Women & Infants opened what was at the time the country’s largest, single-family room neonatal intensive care unit.

Women & Infants and Brown offer fellowship programs in gynecologic oncology, maternal-fetal medicine, urogynecology and reconstructive pelvic surgery, neonatal-perinatal medicine, pediatric and perinatal pathology, gynecologic pathology and cytopathology, and reproductive endocrinology and infertility. It is home to the nation’s first mother-baby perinatal psychiatric partial hospital, as well as the nation’s only fellowship program in obstetric medicine.